A mobile client, such as laptop, smart phone, etc., is increasingly equipped with radios for simultaneously accessing each of a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) (e.g., Wi-Fi) and a Wide Wireless Area Network (WWAN) (e.g., 2G/3G cellular, LTE, WiMAX). It is important the most “suitable” network for an IP packet flow is selected when both types of networks are available. The process for selecting the most suitable network if both types of networks are available is referred to as an IP Flow Mobility technique. Conventional techniques for IP Flow Mobility are set forth in 3GPP TS 23.261 v1.0.1.0 3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Services and System Aspects; IP Flow mobility and seamless Wireless Local Access (WLAN) offload; Stage 2 (Release 10), and in RFC 6089—Flow Bindings in Mobile IPv6 and Network Mobility (NEMO) Basic Support.
A conventional IP Flow Mobility technique, however, only provides for moving a particular IP flow from Win to WWAN, and vice versa, but does not support delivering a single IP flow over multiple networks simultaneously. As used herein, a “single IP flow” or a “single data flow” means a set of IP packets that can be classified into the same group based on the Traffic Selector information, such as Source IP address, Destination IP address, Protocol Type, Source Port Number, Destination Port Number, as set forth in RFC 6088—Traffic Selectors For Flow Bindings. That is, a conventional IP Flow Mobility technique does not provide the capability to split an individual IP flow between multiple available wireless networks in order to provide an enhanced user experience, such as by providing a higher aggregate throughput. What is needed is a technique for splitting an individual IP flow between multiple wireless networks.
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